Horizon air-warfare replacement and missile sovereignty

What work has been done toward replacing the Horizon-class air-warfare ships?

An early and unsettled field shaped by Aster-family development, possible European-Japanese cooperation, and national choices between the Standard Missile ecosystem and greater domestic design control.

At the time of the discussion, no firm replacement ship had emerged. Early work centered on next-generation air-defence and ballistic-missile weapons, with several possible French, Italian, British, and Japanese combinations. Possible British, Italian, and Japanese cooperation was discussed alongside wider involvement around the Tempest programme. The panel contrasts the Standard Missile programme's established weapons and U.S. priorities with the greater influence smaller partners might have in an MBDA-led effort. Japan's domestic missile ambitions form part of that argument. India's work with Israeli missiles is another example raised when discussing countries interested in expanding their own development capability. These possibilities were described as very early discussions.